Finland distributes state-issued emoticons

/ Yonhap

Finland has become the first country to make and distribute state-issued emoticons.

The country's foreign ministry said the emoticons consisted of important elements related to Finland, in order to promote the northern European state.

The first batch consists of three emoticons: a couple in a sauna, a Nokia phone and a headbanger, a symbol for fans of hard rock and heavy metal.

The government will finish the collection of 30 emoticons this month and distribute them online from Dec. 1, the foreign ministry said.

According to data from Instagram, Finnish people showed the widest use of emoticons among people of 14 countries.

The Finnish filled 63 percent of their text on Instagram posts with emoticons, while Japanese, who first developed emoticons, used 39 percent.